Once you fly in First Class, on a long-haul international flight, it's quite difficult to return to coach on another flight having tasted what's on offer in the front of the plane. This is especially true for First passengers on Cathay Pacific, not only because the First Class seats were recently updated and remain a flyer favorite, but because the airline enjoys showing off in the in-flight dining department.

For 2015, Cathay Pacific's big treats for First Class travelers are monthly menus designed by Executive Chefs from Mandarin Oriental properties around the world. We already gave you an exclusive preview of the MO New York February meals, but now it's time for March and Mandarin Oriental San Francisco.

You’re in First Class on Cathay Pacific. The flight is a 16-hour nonstop from New York to Hong Kong, and you’re looking forward to a little sleeping, a little working, and a little eating while watching that movie you’ve been meaning to catch. Then the flight attendant hands you a pair of soft pajamas and the in-flight meal menu, and it becomes quite clear that you’re going to enjoy this flight.

The cherry on top of the experience? 2015 is the year Cathay Pacific has dedicated to featuring unique First Class menus created by chefs from Mandarin Oriental hotel properties around the world. And, oh yes, there will be caviar.

What began as a special feature for just the London route in 2014 expands throughout 2015 to 5 more destinations. The lucky routes: Between Hong Kong and New York-JFK, Boston, San Francisco, Paris, London, and Tokyo-Haneda.

There's a certain smugness that comes with flipping through a passport full of stamps from all over the world. Unfortunately for travelers who enjoy that feeling, stamps from Hong Kong are no longer part of the action.

Forgive us for being super late on this news, but Hong Kong SAR (Special Administrative Region) started dispensing little slips of paper in place of stamps in March 2013, with a full goodbye to stamps in December 2013. It wasn't until our most recent visit last month that we were alerted to the change, and looked at this tiny piece of paper like a step backwards.

"OMG, you're going to have such a great time" isn't the typical response to someone saying they're about to spend over 14 hours on a plane...in Economy.

Alack and alas, we find ourselves reacting in this way when said travel involves flying Cathay Pacific.

Since Cathay Pacific is based in Hong Kong, a "Special Administrative Region" under China and only 426 square miles in size, it has no domestic flights. Every flight from Hong Kong International Airport is truly international, and thus Cathay is an airline completely equipped for long-haul travel, with a fleet of all wide-body aircraft. On top of that, Cathay only introduced their new Economy seats in 2012, so the interiors aren't as tired as you may have come to expect from long-haul aircraft.

While other airlines may offer some of these perks, it's Cathay's particular ratio of comfort to friendliness that may help travelers be least anxious about spending a 14-16 hour nonstop in coach.

In light of this week's mass protests and #OccupyCentral movement in the heart of Hong Kong, some travelers may be worried about disruptions to their travel plans.

Approximately 70 people were arrested in Saturday's protests, and Sunday saw the movement spread to Kowloon, in the always-busy Mongkok neighborhood. An excellent and quick explainer of what's happening in Hong Kong can be found at CNN.com, and also via video on Vox.com. What's most important to remember is that the protesters are not violent; it's about voices, presence, and future freedoms for Hong Kong.

So, should you go? Yes, absolutely still travel to Hong Kong, but do know these things:

Hong Kong may be clear on the other side of the world from New York, but Cathay Pacific's 777-300ER airplanes can make the journey in one swift hop over the North Pole. Come next spring, they'll even be doing so often with a new nonstop route from Boston-Logan International Airport.

This will be the airline's 6th US destination (following JFK, EWR, SFO, LAX, and ORD). To celebrate, and to fill up their first month of flights with smiling faces, they've launched a deep discount airfare sale on the new route, with roundtrip tickets going for a total of $753.88. That's a whole $4 cheaper than last year's similar launch sale to Newark.

Hong Kong’s Chek Lap Kok airport is not a bad place to spend a few hours pre-departure. In fact, it’s high on our list of favorite airports around, especially if you’re flying in a premium cabin on Cathay Pacific or another oneworld airline for the excellent airline lounge options. We just took you inside a private Cabana in the flagship “The Wing” First Class lounge and the latest Cathay addition “The Bridge,” and are finishing up with the even newer Qantas lounge, which arrived in April.

Located on level 7, but at the opposite end of Cathay Pacific’s The Wing Lounge, the new Qantas Hong Kong Lounge brings the previous underground Business Class Lounge up to where its separate First Class Lounge used to be, redesigning the whole space in the process. It's huge for a dedicated airline lounge at an airport where there already are a range of oneworld alliance lounge options, and it seats up to 300 passengers at a time.

Hong Kong gets a lot of love from us for many reasons, not least among which is its awesome airport, Chek Lap Kok. No matter how you pass through HKG, you’re likely to have a pleasant experience, but this being the home of Cathay Pacific, flying in a premium cabin or having the right status with oneworld alliance means you’re in for a real treat.

The airline lounges here are among the best in existence, and they're regularly updated with the newest lounge niceties. When we flew out of Hong Kong earlier this month, we made sure to build in enough time to explore them all. Naturally we first aimed straight for the top, with the private cabanas in the redesigned Cathay Pacific “The Wing” First Class lounge.

With “The Wing,” “The Pier,” and “The Cabin,” you’d think Cathay wouldn’t need another airline lounge, but they went ahead and did it anyway, opening “The Bridge” late last year. The lounge is located at the far end of the terminal, just after gates 35 and 36, "bridging" the base of the Y that the building splits into at this point.

The Bridge is a combined business & first class lounge, and depending on your departure gate it might be a bit of a longer walk / detour, but we’d likely seek out The Bridge regardless of proximity to our gate the next time we’re in Hong Kong – read on to find out why.

Both Hong Kong and South Korea love their tea, although they have quite different styles; the Chinese prefer black teas like oolong, while Koreans love green and flower teas and Hong Kongers are known for their obsession with milk tea.

Though we’re not going to take a side on which tea we like the best, we did visit tea museums in both cities, and we’re ready to advise you on which one’s more worth a trip:

We come across some downright awesome airline amenity kits in our travels, and the surprises of each zippered pouch can often make or break comfort on a premium flight. With this in mind, here's to our new series: Inside the Amenity Kit, wherein we unzip, unwrap, and expose the loot inside:

Traveling from North America or Europe to Hong Kong means a long flight no matter which way you play it, but it's HK's hometown airline Cathay Pacific that leads in premium plush to make the hours pass a little faster.